As a director, I was one of the
guilty ones that tried to do everything myself, allowing myself to be swamped with work
and never seeing the 'light at the end of the tunnel'. After wandering aimlessly for
several years, I made a landmark decision....."I am not WONDER WOMAN, and I cannot do
all of this by myself!" (brilliant deduction!) I realized that not only were there
other capable people, but there were many who were eager to assist.

I first sat down with my officers
to discuss their commitments. Together we wrote out a list of duties and responsibilities
for the captain, lieutenants as well as other officers. By spelling out exactly what was
expected of them for daily duties and special assignments, each felt a great sense of
pride and commitment to do a good job. We typed up these duties and passed them down each
year to the new officers.

Next, I met with the social
officers. Each officer had a specific project to plan along with their general
organizational responsibilities. Example: the President was in charge of all Big
Sis/Little Sis projects; V.P. was in charge of Senior Tea; Secretary was in charge of
Homecoming activities; Treasurer was in charge of school public relations (band, football,
teachers). As in the dance officers, we typed these duties and passed them on to the new
social officers.

The Managers of the drill team
can be a great help or an annoyance and distraction if their duties are not spelled out
for them. Often they get bored because of uncertainty of their specific responsibilities
or discouraged because of lack of self esteem or importance. As I always had several
managers, I divided their duties as follows:

*One acted as the 'nurse' or
'trainer' and always carried the first aid supplies as well as the medical release forms.
She was required to take CPR, first aid and training skills from the school athletic
trainer.

*One was in charge of all tapes
and sound equipment during practice or performances. She also ran music and duplicated
practice tapes for the team members.

*One was 'wardrobe chairman,' in
charge of all props and costumes to issue and check back in each week. She would also
monitor inventory and prop repairs as well as re-orders.

*One was my 'business manager'.
She was usually the one that was an upper classman that had taken computer, typing or
bookkeeping classes. She would type letters, transfer mailing labels to the computer,
write memos, receipts and general team bookkeeping.

The Booster Club I had was great.
There were always many parents eager and willing to help. We broke into groups and
committees for fundraising, costume making and chaperones. I met monthly with committee
chairmen and executive board members to plan the needs and strategies for the team.

To mobilize each of these groups
into action may require more planning and meeting time in the beginning stages, but the
results will allow you some mental freedom when you leave school in the afternoon and see
more proficiency in the business mechanics of your team.